Dilandau's Revenge
by MomsDarkSecret
Summary: Dilandau has resurfaced with a thirst for revenge against the Zybach scientists who destroyed Celena's life. Can Allen stop him before Zybach forces destroy him? COMPLETED.
1. Dark Memories

**Disclaimer: **The characters Dilandau, Celena Schezar, Allen Schezar, Van Fanel, Hitomi Kanzaki (Fanel) and other characters from Escaflowne are borrowed from the TV series _The Vision of Escaflowne_, created by Sunrise and directed by Kazuki Akane. The original characters of Vulcan and Amano Fanel, who are sons of Van and Hitomi, were invented by me.

**Introduction**: At the end of the Escaflowne series, Allen Schezar has reclaimed his sister, Celena, from the clutches of the Zaibach scientists who turned her into Dilandau. Not surprisingly, Celena is not particularly sane, but she seems harmless. Unfortunately, she has also not been cured. One interesting side-effect of the Zaibach experiments, however, is longevity. Although Celena is about 46 or 47 years old at this point, she still only looks about 25 years old. Allen has been working hard all this time to help Celena recover, but as she recovers her memories, she starts to have nightmares, and unbeknownst to Allen, the nightmares are bringing Dilandau back to the surface.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Chapter 1: Dark Memories

Celena woke up screaming again. Her imagination filled the room with faceless men and terrible machines. The memory of pain ached through her joints. She curled up on her side and shuddered. She hated the memories. It was better when she didn't remember. But it was important to Allen and she wanted to please him. He was so kind to her. But the memories were horrifying. Memories of things that were done to her left her shaking and nauseous. Memories of things that she had done left her sickened, except those memories didn't really feel like hers. They felt like someone else's memories shoved into her head, jagged and sharp.

The door to her room opened, letting in a rectangle of light.

"Are you all right, Celena?"

It was Allen. Celena sat up and looked at him, wiping the tears from her eyes.

"I had a bad dream again."

Allen came in and sat on the bed beside her. He put one muscular arm around her shoulders comfortingly. "I wish I knew how to make them stop," he said.

Celena said nothing. She was pretty sure the dreams would stop if she stopped trying to remember, but she couldn't tell Allen that. He was hoping she would remember her childhood, when they had played together in the fields around their house. He thought it would make her better. But it just made her sad to think she had been a happy little girl once, and that it had all been ripped away. She leaned against his shoulder and closed her eyes.

Allen stayed with her until she went back to sleep and Celena didn't have any more dreams that night.

During the day, Celena liked to work in the vast hanger where Scheherazade and the Crusade were kept. It seemed odd, when she remembered so little, that working with machinery came to her so naturally. Allen let her do the maintenance work on Scheherazade because she found it relaxing, even if she couldn't explain to herself or anyone else why she wanted to do particular things.

But after the nightmares started, Celena began doing things to Scheherazade that didn't seem to make sense at all. It made so little sense, in fact, that she couldn't even ask the servants or Allen's men to buy things for her, because she couldn't even explain what she wanted. So instead, she would ask Allen for money and go into the city herself to buy parts and equipment. Fortunately, one of the mechanics who worked on the Crusade had a natural gift that meshed comfortably with her own, and he would sometimes work with her. He never asked what she was doing, he just seemed to understand how certain things needed to be done and he helped her without question.

He also didn't seem to notice or care when Celena talked to the voice in her head. It was the voice that directed a lot of what she was doing. She hadn't been able to hear it that well in the beginning, but as she began to get a sense that her work was nearing completion, the voice spoke to her more and more clearly.

Celena like the voice because it promised an end to the nightmares and the pain.

"When they're all dead, it will stop," it whispered.

"Who?" Celena answered.

"The Zaibach scientists. We'll kill them all."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Gaddes watched Celena working on Scheherazade at the other end of the hanger.

"Do you think it's a good idea to let her do that, Allen?" he asked. "She's making a lot of modifications. What if Scheherazade stops working?"

"It's all right, Gaddes," Allen answered. He smiled sadly. "It seems to be the only thing that makes her feel better. And the repairs she made after I got back from Freid last year were perfect."

"You know where she learned that." Gaddes frowned. "Dilandau was really well trained."

"I know. But what can I do? Nothing I do really seems to be helping her."

"Maybe she's beyond help. The things they did to her were pretty terrible."

"I can't leave it at that, Gaddes," Allen replied. There was deep pain in his voice. "She's the only family I have."

Gaddes clasped Allen's shoulder. "I understand."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Dilandau woke abruptly. It was dark and the room at first seemed unfamiliar.

"It's my room," Celena whispered.

Dilandau remembered Celena. For years now, she was the frightened little voice he would hear in the back of his mind whenever he woke up. It was good that she was there. It meant he was never alone. Dilandau hated being alone. When you were alone, bad people were free to do terrible things to you.

Like the Zaibach scientists had done to him. They had hurt him and hurt him until he couldn't remember anything before the pain. He had only existed since the pain. But there had been a time before the pain, because Celena said so. But Celena didn't remember it either.

"But if they're all dead," Dilandau said to himself, "the pain can never come back. Then we can both remember."

"Yes!" Celena murmured.

Dilandau slipped out of bed. He was wearing a night dress, which was odd, but unimportant. He found appropriate clothes in the bottom drawer of the dresser and put them on. There were sturdy boots that fit him perfectly in the closet. He walked silently through the dark house and found his way outside. It was the stillest part of the night, when people sleep the most deeply. He knew there was a hanger nearby with a guymelef in it. He went there and entered the hanger in silence.

The guymelef reminded him of the one that Allen Schezar used, but it was different somehow. He could tell it had been recently modified, but he understood the modifications and smiled. This was perfect. Dilandau climbed into the guymelef and activated it. He lumbered slowly to the front of the hanger and pushed the doors open with a protesting screech. Everyone would have heard that, but Dilandau didn't care. With a harsh laugh, he activated the new controls and the Scheherazade, if she was indeed the Scheherazade, transformed.

Her body slanted forward, bending at the knee in the opposite direction from normal, and sleek wings fanned out from her sides. Her mask molded forward and formed into a sharp beak. And the Golden Hawk Scheherazade leaped into the sky.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Allen watched Scheherazade disappear into the darkness. He was angry. Angry at Zaibach, angry at himself, and angry at a world that allowed a little girl to be turned into a monster.

"Prep the Crusade," he growled. "We're going after her."

"Did you see how fast she was going?" Gaddes replied. "That was as fast as the Escaflowne. We'll never catch her."

Allen turned to Gaddes, fighting to keep his voice level. "If Dilandau has re-surfaced, I don't think we'll have any trouble tracking him."

Gaddes paled. "What if he turns on us?"

"Then we capture him." Allen gripped Gaddes' shoulder. "I don't care what it takes, Gaddes. We're getting my sister back."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Look, do you see it?" Dilandau whispered. "It's a Zaibach floating fortress."

"I see it," Celena whispered.

"We should destroy it!" Dilandau murmured, a wide ruthless grin spreading across his handsome face.

"But there are people inside!" Celena protested faintly.

"Zaibach soldiers!" Dilandau corrected. His convictions assured him that this was not the same thing as people.

He drove Scheherazade high up into the sky, higher than he had ever driven a Zaibach flying guymelef, until he was nothing but a tiny spec high above the fortress. He drew Scheherazade's great shimmering sword.

"Aim for the very heart," he told himself and he plunged downward.

He fell so fast that the proximity sensors on the fortress had only seconds to sound the warning klaxons. And then his mighty sword slashed through the shell of the fortress and split it open. Smoke and flame spewed from the rent.

Dilandau laughed with glee. "Burn!" he cried. "Burn, all of you!"

He pulled up out of his fall and banked sharply, flying back up beneath the fortress to drive his sword directly into the fortress' power unit. It exploded, showering him with sparks and flame.

"Yes!" Dilandau shouted. "Die!"

He swooped away as the giant levi-stones began to break free and chunks of the fortress began to fall.

"Let them all die!" he whispered.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"You were right, Allen. Dilandau is easy to track." Gaddes, Allen and several other men stood on the deck of the Crusade, looking down at the smoking remains of a Zaibach floating fortress. "I doubt anyone else could have brought this down."

Allen nodded. His expression was grim. "Let's check for survivors."

"Why bother?" someone muttered. "Dilandau never leaves survivors."

Allen whirled on the man angrily. "We'll check anyway!" he snarled. "We have to know for certain if Celena… if Dilandau did this." He stormed away, his hand clenched on the hilt of his sword.

There were no survivors. Clearly, the attack had happened without warning, giving the Zaibach soldiers no time to defend themselves. Whether or not Allen wanted to admit it, this was obviously Dilandau's handiwork.

"There's one thing I don't understand," Gaddes said. He and Allen were standing in Allen's stateroom, studying a map of Gaia. "Why would he attack Zaibach? He was a Zaibach soldier himself."

"I don't know," Allen replied softly. "Maybe it's because of Celena. She's been remembering things. Maybe Dilandau wants to get revenge for what happened to her." Allen closed his eyes for a moment to keep tears from forming. Had he done the wrong thing, trying to make her remember the past? How was it possible that he could love his sister and still hate everything about Dilandau?

"With the modifications Celena made to Scheherazade, Dilandau can kill a lot of people," Gaddes said matter-of-factly. "We can track him in the Crusade, but we'll never catch him."

"I know," Allen answered. "And Zaibach still has a lot of military power. We have to stop him before they kill him."

"We need help," Gaddes stated. "We need Van Fanel and the Escaflowne."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Queen Hitomi!" The young guard was clearly very excited as he burst into her sitting room without knocking. "The Crusade has been sighted landing outside the city!"

Hitomi wondered if he had never seen the Crusade before. "Please inform King Van," she said calmly.

"Yes, milady!" The guard dashed away.

Hitomi covered her own excitement by neatly folding her embroidery before setting it aside and going to meet Van on the castle steps. "Why do you suppose Allen is here?" she asked as they hurried toward the front gate.

"He did say he was going to visit again."

"I know, but you know how proper Allen can be. He would have sent us a message first."

"True." Van frowned. "That means it's probably trouble."

Hitomi laughed. "There's no middle ground with you, is there?"

"Well, what else could it be?" Van replied, but he smiled as he said it.

The Crusade's crew members were lashing her in place by the time Van and Hitomi reached the wide meadow outside the city gates. The Crusade had not been in Fanelia since returning Yukari, Darvi and the Fanelian samurai home after the war in Freid. Allen appeared on the ramp as Van and Hitomi approached and he hurried toward them.

"Van!" Allen cried as he neared them. "I need your help!"

"What did I tell you?" Van muttered to Hitomi. To Allen, he said, "What do you need, Allen?"

"It's my sister, Celena. She's in trouble."

Van frowned. "Is it Celena or Dilandau?"

Allen's face darkened. "That's not fair, Van. Celena's been through a lot."

"I know that, but I'm still not going to forget who she is, or what she did to Fanelia."

"Celena's not Dilandau," Allen said quickly, but Hitomi sensed something in his manner that made her feel he was holding back.

"I think we should return to the castle before we discuss this any further," Hitomi said. She hooked her left hand around Allen's arm and captured Van's arm with her right. "It would be better to talk about it while sitting down with a cool drink."

Van acquiesced without a word. Allen hesitated for a moment before allowing Hitomi to steer him toward the city gates. No one spoke until they were all comfortably seated in Hitomi's favorite parlor.

"Now," Hitomi said calmly, "tell us what happened."

"Celena has… stolen Scheherazade."

"She shouldn't be hard to find, then," Van said flatly.

"Um…" Allen shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

"Out with it, Allen!" Van demanded.

"She modified Scheherazade to be a flying guymelef. She's as fast as the Escaflowne now. We can't catch her in the Crusade."

Van stared. "How the hell did she do that?" Then he waved his own question away. "Never mind. Dilandau."

"I need you and the Escaflowne to come with us, Van. We have to catch her before…" Allen stopped abruptly.

"Before what?" Van leaned forward expectantly.

Allen hesitated for a long moment and then his shoulders slumped in resignation. "I think Dilandau has partly resurfaced," he said finally. "I think he's going back to Zaibach to take his revenge. "

Van sat back. "So what's the problem? I don't care if he destroys Zaibach."

"But there's no way a single guymelef can take on the Zaibach Empire!" Allen exclaimed. "Celena will be killed!"

"Dilandau was a member of the Zaibach military," Hitomi interrupted. "What makes you think he's planning revenge?"

"Because he has already destroyed a Zaibach floating fortress," Allen replied.

"So that was Dilandau?" Van laughed softly. "I heard about that, but I thought it was just an accident. It serves them right, anyway. They were outside their own territory."

"Van, please!" There was desperation in Allen's voice.

Hitomi glanced at Van's face. She recognized the resolute expression she saw there. Van had no interest in helping Dilandau or Zaibach. But that was no reason not to help Allen. She leaned forward and put her hand on Van's knee. "Van, Dilandau may have been your enemy, and Zaibach, too, but Allen is our friend. He is asking us for help. We owe him our assistance out of friendship, if for no other reason."

Van met her eyes thoughtfully. "Very well." He turned to Allen. "For friendship's sake, I will lend you the Escaflowne. I cannot in good conscience help you myself, but I will send my son Vulcan with you to pilot the Escaflowne. He has been training for the past year or so and can handle the guymelef fairly well. It will be a good opportunity for him to hone his skills."

A look of sharp relief washed over Allen's features. "Thank you, Van. I appreciate this."

"One thing, though," Van said sternly. "I know you want to capture your sister and Scheherazade intact, but please do not risk my son's life unnecessarily to do so. Vulcan is a good fighter, but he's young and inexperienced, like I was when you met me. Please remember that."

Allen nodded. "I will," he replied gravely.

"It will take us a day or two to prepare, Allen," Hitomi said. "Please accept our hospitality for you and your men until then."

"Thank you." Allen bowed his head.


	2. Adventure Calls

Chapter 2: Adventure Calls

Vulcan went on the defensive as Amano launched a furious attack. Chief Samurai Sesston always admonished Amano for these attacks, calling them reckless, but Vulcan didn't really agree with that assessment. At fifteen, Amano defeated just about everyone who faced him once he decided to do it. His speed and precision were breathtaking. Vulcan remembered their father saying once that he thought Amano would one day be able to beat Allen Schezar in a fair fight. That was high praise indeed. Allen Schezar was commonly held to be the finest swordsman in Gaia.

Vulcan held his own for the first dozen or so passes, but eventually, Amano executed a very clever engage and twist that sent Vulcan's sword spinning out of his hand.

"Why can't you let me win just one, out of kindness to your dear brother?" Vulcan panted.

"Sesston says I should always try to win, no matter what," Amano replied with a grin. "It would be an insult to my training to do otherwise."

"Well, it doesn't do much for my ego."

"Sorry."

Vulcan smiled as he retrieved his sword. He really didn't mind losing to Amano. Their father always said there was no shame in losing to a better swordsman, as long as you learned from the experience. Vulcan suspected he was a better swordsman than most of the Fanelian Samurai simply from the amount of time he spent sparring with Amano.

"Do you want to go again?" Amano asked. He was barely breathing hard.

"Sure, but let me catch my breath first."

"You're getting old!"

"Brat!"

"Take a break, boys. I need to talk to Vulcan." Van spoke from the doorway, where he had obviously been watching them.

Vulcan immediately came to respectful attention. "What is it, Father?"

Van came straight to the point. "Allen Schezar has asked to borrow the Escaflowne. You will accompany him as the pilot."

Vulcan's mouth fell open in surprise. "Really!" he exclaimed. "Do you think I'm ready?"

Van smiled slightly. "We'll never really know until you pilot the Escaflowne in combat." He came into the dojo and put a hand on Vulcan's shoulder. "You know how to pilot the Escaflowne, but you still think too much. Your responses need to be more instinctive. Combat situations are the best way I know to develop a true rapport with your guymelef. While I don't agree with why Allen wants our help, I do believe this will be good training for you." He squeezed Vulcan's shoulder. "You will be King of Fanelia one day. You must learn to have complete faith in yourself."

"I understand, Father." Vulcan's eyes were shining with excitement. Van would never have made this decision if he did not think Vulcan could handle it. Vulcan felt a tremendous surge of pride.

"May I go to, Father?" Amano asked. He was also standing at respectful attention, but his stance, with his sword angled down and away from his body, showed he was ready to fight on an instant's notice.

Van regarded his younger son thoughtfully. "This mission is going to be very dangerous."

"I want to be there to watch Vulcan's back," Amano said gravely. "I'm a good swordsman. I can take care of myself."

"I know that," Van said. "But some might say it is a bad idea to risk both my sons, especially on a mission I don't fully support."

"Why don't you support it?" Vulcan asked curiously. "Why send me if you don't agree?"

Van sighed. "I'm sending you because Allen asked for my help. But what he wants the help for…" Van frowned. "His sister Celena has turned back into Dilandau, and Dilandau has gone to Zybach to punish them for destroying Celena's life. At least that's what Allen thinks. But I can't forgive Dilandau for what he did to Fanelia. He killed a lot of people. And frankly, I don't care if he kills a lot of Zybach soldiers and himself in the process."

"But why does Allen need our help?"

Van laughed harshly. "Because Allen trusted her, and she used his trust to convert the Scheherazade into a flying guymelef. Allen can't catch her in the Crusade."

"Oh."

"So, Father," Amano spoke up again. "May I go with Vulcan?"

Van looked at Amano again for a moment and then shrugged. "Why not? I got my best training in the field during the war with Zybach. You may accompany your brother."

"Yes!" Amano exclaimed delightedly.

"But…" Van held up his finger to get Amano's attention. "You will obey Allen at all times and not take unnecessary risks. You get a little reckless sometimes. I want you to promise to be careful."

"I promise, Father," Amano replied. He tried very hard to look serious.

"Good. Now I just have to explain it to your mother."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Both of them!" Hitomi stared at Van.

"Amano asked to go and I didn't see any reason why he shouldn't. Young men need the opportunity to try their skills in the field."

"So you agreed without even talking to me?"

Van put his arms around Hitomi. "They'll be all right. Despite what I said, I do trust Allen. He won't endanger them."

"But they're going into a war!"

The unhappiness on Hitomi's face touched Van, as always. He couldn't resist the urge to kiss her. She pushed him away.

"Quit trying to distract me!" she snapped. "Amano is barely past childhood. He's only fifteen! He's not ready for this."

"I think he is. Don't forget, I train with him every day in the dojo. Amano is a better swordsman than I am. He's probably better than Allen." Van pulled her close again. "And I think it will help Vulcan to have Amano there. You know Vulcan tends to second-guess himself. With Amano to back him up, he will learn to trust his own instincts more, and that is what I want for him. This is important for them. It's time we let them grow into the men they need to become."

Hitomi glared at him.

"You'll recall, I was not that much older than Amano when we met, when I killed my first dragon."

"You had no choice," she said, but her glare softened a little.

"True, but I was ready for the challenge, and so are they."

Hitomi frowned at him for a moment longer, but then her face softened completely. "I'm just frightened for them." She put her head on Van's shoulder. "It's hard for a mother to let go."

"You let go of Yukari."

Hitomi laughed softly. "She didn't leave me much choice. Besides, she has a family of her own now and that keeps her out of trouble. Mostly." She looked up at him. "Maybe I need to have another baby."

Van grinned at her. "Bethany is nine years old now. Are you sure you want to start over again? You can always play with Yukari's twins."

"You don't want to give me another baby?" She fluttered her eyelashes at him coyly. "Or do you think I'm too old?"

"I think…" Van nuzzled her ear, "we should just pretend we're trying to have another baby." He kissed her deeply. "And you're not too old for me."

Hitomi giggled. "I'm not busy right now."

"Oh good," Van murmured, "neither am I, and you've given me all kinds of ideas."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Unidentified guymelef! Hold where you are!"

The voice sounded a little tinny coming out of Scheherazade's speakers. Dilandau giggled. The four Zybach flying guymelefs had him surrounded, or so they thought. They had their liquid metal cannons trained on him, ready to shoot him at the first sign of trouble. But they would never see trouble coming. Dilandau giggled again.

He kicked the controls and the Scheherazade shot between two of the Zybach guymelefs. Instinctively, they tried to follow his path and shoot him, as he knew they would, and he laughed with glee as their bolts of liquid metal punched through each other. Their cries of surprise and pain as their guymelef's exploded rang from the speakers and were abruptly cut off.

Dilandau rolled over and shot straight up, just in time to avoid the bolts of liquid metal fired by the other two guymelefs. He flew just fast enough to stay out of range of their cannons, but not so fast as to lose them. He didn't want to lose them. He wasn't done with them yet.

He stayed low to the ground as he flew, skimming over the hilltops just above the trees. The guymelefs followed him, laboring to keep up. They were pushing their systems to maximum power to maintain this speed, which meant they could neither go invisible nor fire their cannons. They were, to Dilandau's mind, helpless.

After a few minutes, he found what he was looking for. A long, high ridge jutted out from the side of a mountain, with sheer drops on either side. Dilandau zoomed up the face of the ridge, zipped over the top and dropped down the far side. But once he was out of sight of the pursuit, he slammed to a halt, drew his sword and waited. The two guymelefs came flying over the ridge at high speed. Their momentum carried them well out into the open with their backs to Dilandau.

Dilandau cackled as he shot forward. He spun as he flashed between them, his sword sweeping through both guymelefs with crackling explosions. Their pilots screamed as flame engulfed them and their guymelefs plummeted toward the ground.

"Die! All of you will die!" Dilandau screamed.

"You killed them!" Celena whispered. Her little voice was filled with unhappiness.

"They all deserve to die," Dilandau whispered back. "It won't end until they're all dead."

"But it's wrong to kill," Celena murmured.

"Not when they deserve it," Dilandau said aloud, his face flushed with conviction. No one in Zybach deserved to live. Not the scientists, anyway. And the soldiers had to die in order for him to reach the scientists. Everything he did was justified. Everything.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Allen, I've been able to crack the Zybach communications!" Gaddes reported excitedly.

"Well done, Gaddes!" Allen stood up from the table where he had been examining a map of Zybach. "I can't predict where Dilandau will go next. He seems to be attacking at random." He pointed at spots on the map marked with small pins. Although the spots were all more or less in the same general area, there didn't seem to be any pattern to where they appeared. "I get the impression he's trying to clean out all the soldiers in this one area."

"They'll just send more soldiers," Gaddes said. He leaned over the map. "They've got lots of them."

"I know. I just wish we could figure out where he's going next and get there ahead of him. Unless I can appeal directly to Celena, I don't know how we're going to regain control of the Scheherazade."

Gaddes nodded without comment. Allen studied his face.

"You don't think Celena's still in there, do you?" Allen asked quietly.

A flush of guilt stole across Gaddes' face. "She was Dilandau for a lot longer than she was Celena," he said slowly. "And the Zybach scientists were pretty thorough with the changes they made to turn her into Dilandau. I'm just not sure she can influence what he does. It's like they're two people in one body."

Allen frowned unhappily. "I hear what you're saying Gaddes. I just can't let myself believe that. I don't want to lose Celena completely." He sighed. "Let's go eavesdrop on the Zybach command and see what we can find out."

They walked to the control room, which crackled with the sound of the Zybach communications network.

"…_four flying guymelefs destroyed! Contact with the attacking guymelef was lost!_"

"He just attacked a patrol, Allen!" one of the pilots reported. "The location is not too far from here."

"Set a course!" Allen replied immediately. "But watch out for Zybach patrols. We're in their territory. In all likelihood, they'll decide we're responsible if they see us."

"Yes, sir!"

The pilot altered course and increased speed.

"Gaddes, go find Vulcan and tell him to get the Escaflowne ready. We'll need him if we run into the Scheherazade or Zybach soldiers."

"Right!" Gaddes hurried out.

Allen stared ahead as the Crusade flew swiftly toward where Dilandau had just destroyed the Zybach guymelefs. If they were lucky, they'd run into him somewhere near the scene. But they had not been lucky so far. They'd come too late twice now on scenes of smoking destruction that were all that was left to mark Dilandau's passage. He'd lost none of his passion for setting things on fire. But it was only a matter of time before the Zybach soldiers were able to corner him, and then nothing would save Celena if Allen was not there to help.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Vulcan tried to look cool and calm as he climbed into the Escaflowne and brought its systems on-line. He'd practiced launching from the Crusade's flight deck a few times so he would be prepared if he had to do it on short notice, but his landings were still something of a disaster. He had not damaged the Crusade trying to return to the flight deck, but it had been close a couple of times. Amano kept telling him to quit thinking so much, but Vulcan had no idea how to do that. There were so many things to keep track of during a landing on a moving target, he didn't know how to do it without thinking about it.

Amano was standing in front of him on the hanger deck now with an excited smile. He always had something encouraging to say, no matter how badly Vulcan bungled a landing, and Vulcan was glad he was here.

Vulcan stood up and lumbered out onto the flight deck. He was tapped into the Crusade's communications, which allowed him to also listen to the pilfered Zybach communications. He felt a chill run through him when a sudden exchange crackled out of his speakers.

"_A flying ship sighted approaching from the east!_"

"_It's the Crusade!_"

"_Launch all guymelefs! Attack!_"

Allen's voice overrode the exchange. "Vulcan, get moving! We're sitting ducks here. We'll try to outrun them, but you need to slow them down."

"Yes sir!" Vulcan responded. He touched the controls to transform the Escaflowne into the dragon and he swooped off the ship. Half a dozen flying guymelefs were dropping out of a floating fortress just visible above the horizon to the west. Vulcan flew straight toward them, drawing his sword as he went. Behind him, the Crusade turned around and picked up speed.

The guymelefs slowed down so they could draw power to shoot their liquid metal cannons. Vulcan knew the dragon presented a poor target head on, so he didn't try any evasive maneuvers until they actually fired. Then he shot forward at full speed and gained altitude abruptly. The liquid metal shot harmlessly beneath him. They adjusted to shoot again, but Vulcan was already upon them. He dropped down, slashing through a guymelef on his left with his sword and whipping the one on his right with his tail. The first guymelef exploded. The second one tumbled out of control and smashed into another guymelef. Vulcan left them to sort themselves out and attacked to his left, slashing furiously.

Now that the heat of battle was upon him, he didn't have time to analyze his every move. He fought instinctively, letting his innate understanding of the Escaflowne's capabilities guide his actions. At this close range, the guymelefs couldn't shoot him. With the Escaflowne's superior speed and maneuverability, he had the Zybach soldiers at a disadvantage. Within minutes, he had destroyed or disabled all six guymelefs.

More guymelefs were dropping out of the flying fortress. Vulcan didn't wait to engage them. The Crusade was nearly out of sight. He turned and flew after the Asturian ship, watching behind him to see if they were pursued. The Zybach guymelefs couldn't keep up with him and after a few moments, they gave up. Vulcan heaved a sigh of relief. They had escaped safely from their first encounter with Zybach forces. He caught up with the Crusade and angled in for a landing on the flight deck.

The Crusade was moving much faster than she had been during Vulcan's previous landing attempts. He immediately had serious misgivings about making a successful landing. He moved up over the flight deck, trying to line up between the levi-stone supports and the big doors of the hanger deck. He was so worried about bumping into the supports that he moved much closer to the doors than he should have. He dropped down to land and the Escaflowne's left wing smashed into the hanger doors.

"Oh, crap!" Vulcan exclaimed.

"Nice landing, big brother!" Amano's voice crackled out of the speakers. "But I think Allen was still using those doors."

"Ha-ha."

"How'd it go?"

"Fine. I didn't have any problems."

"That's probably because you don't think too much when you're fighting."

"I guess so."

"Now if you could just think less during landings…"

"Oh, shut up."


	3. Path of Destruction

Chapter 3: Path of Destruction

Dilandau chuckled gleefully as he looked down on the Zybach town. A floating fortress hovered above the town, and several guymelefs standing in neat ranks below it indicated that a garrison was being maintained there. But hasty fortifications erected around the perimeter of the area also indicated that the garrison had not been there long.

"All this, just for me!" he whispered delightedly. "They are finally starting to take me seriously."

"Are they afraid of us?" Celena whispered. Her small voice did not sound as frightened as it had in the past.

"They have learned to be afraid of us," Dilandau replied gravely. He always took Celena's concerns seriously. She was too gentle-hearted, but he did not want to frighten her away. If she disappeared, he would be alone, and Dilandau did not want to face his enemies alone.

"There are people other than soldiers here," Celena pointed out.

She was right, of course. Ordinary Zybach citizens could be seen going about their business in the streets and working in the fields outside the new barricades. Some of the barricades looked as if they had been erected across cultivated fields. Dilandau frowned. In the past, he would not have cared about the inconvenience to common people. Soldiers did what they needed to do. But looking at those barricades through Celena's eyes, he could imagine the food that was lost when the fields were torn up. Anger welled up in him.

"This garrison shouldn't be here!" he growled. "Coming here put these people in a war zone." He glanced at his power settings. The Scheherazade was at full power. He studied the garrison again and smiled. "They are still underestimating me," he murmured. "Do you see what they've done wrong, Celena?"

"No."

"I'll show you."

Dilandau pulled in his wings tight against his sides and dropped toward the floating fortress. He wondered how long he would keep getting away with this maneuver before the Zybach forces figured out how to counter it. He plunged from the sky like a meteor. The fortress was too close to the ground for him to fall past it and strike, and still have time to pull up. So he did not fall straight toward the fortress, but a little to one side of it. As the fortress' klaxons began sounding the alert, he flared his wings and banked sharply, streaking past the fortress horizontally and cutting a long deep slice through it with his sword as he went by. Flame exploded out of the rent and the fortress listed to one side.

A few guymelefs were starting to lift off the ground, but Dilandau ignored them, concentrating instead on the fortress. He did a high speed vertical turn with a roll and flew back toward the fortress to strike it again. They fired at him, but the bolts were easy to avoid. He dipped low and flew straight up, hacking another long deep slash into the fortress' side. More explosions followed the path of his sword and a levi-stone broke free. The fortress listed even more wildly.

"One more should do it," Dilandau whispered. He flew straight up, reversed, and came straight down, hacking another levi-stone free.

The fortress' weight was too much for the remaining levi-stones and it tumbled out of control. More explosions wracked the fortress as it began to fall. On the ground below, panicked soldiers raced to get out of the way as flaming debris rained down on the parked guymelefs.

"That was their mistake!" Dilandau cried triumphantly. "They did not imagine that I could destroy the fortress and therefore did not consider the loss of everything below it." He laughed, a little maniacally.

"So many lives!" Celena whispered unhappily.

"Soldiers lives," Dilandau responded. "Death always waits for soldiers." He rubbed his finger along the scar on his cheek. "So many of my friends are dead." Sadness held him still for a moment, but then the sight of guymelefs flying toward him brought him back to the present. "Soldiers know their lives are forfeit!" he cried and launched the Scheherazade toward them.

These guymelefs were no match for his speed. Destroying them was easy. But Dilandau stopped after he destroyed all the guymelefs in the air and did not attack the soldiers still on the ground because Celena's unhappy weeping in the back of his mind worried him.

"I did not harm civilians, Celena," Dilandau said. "Please don't cry."

"It's wrong to kill," Celena said in a small, small voice. She sounded very far away.

"I won't kill any more soldiers!" Dilandau said quickly. "Just the scientists. All right?"

After a long silence, Celena whispered, "All right. Just the men who hurt us and caused the bad dreams."

"Yes," Dilandau agreed. "Just them. I will try not to kill anyone else."

"Thank you."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"There he is! Commander! I see the Scheherazade!" the lookout shouted into the intercom.

"Where!" Allen cried.

"To the west! Near that column of smoke!"

"He must have attacked something," Gaddes said. He looked at the map. "There should be a town over there."

"Why would he attack a town?" Allen frowned unhappily. "Get us over there! Now!" he shouted at the pilot, even though the man was already steering toward the west to intercept the new course. Allen turned to Vulcan. "Take the Escaflowne. I need you to keep him in sight. Don't try to engage him"

"Yes, sir!" Vulcan dashed away to the hanger deck with Amano on his heels.

Amano watched nervously as Vulcan climbed into the Escaflowne. "Be careful, Vulcan. Remember what Father said. Dilandau is dangerous and insane. There's no telling how he'll react to the sight of the Escaflowne."

Vulcan nodded. "I'll be careful." He stood up and walked out onto the flight deck. Once outside, he transformed into the dragon and flew off toward the towering column of smoke. He could just see the bright golden shape of the Scheherazade circling the smoke. _I wonder why there aren't any guymelefs?_ Vulcan wondered. _The smoke should have attracted some, I would think._ As he neared the smoke, however, he could see the crushed and burning remains of several guymelefs on the ground. Dilandau had dropped a floating fortress onto a garrison. _The death toll must be horrific!_ Vulcan thought, shocked.

Vulcan flipped on his communicator. "Scheherazade, this is Vulcan Fanel in the Escaflowne. I order you to return to the Crusade."

"Vulcan?" Dilandau's voice crackled out of the speaker. "Vulcan is dead."

For a moment, Vulcan was confused, and then it came back to him. His father's older brother, for whom Vulcan was named, had been in the service of the Zybach Empire prior to his death. Dilandau had known him.

"My uncle is dead," Vulcan replied. "I am his namesake. My father is Van Fanel. You must return to the Crusade at once."

"Van Fanel?" There was a faint hint of a giggle in Dilandau's voice. "Van killed all my friends. Is that why you're here? To finish what he started? To kill me?" Suddenly, the Scheherazade streaked away toward the horizon. "You'll have to catch me first!"

"Dammit!" Vulcan cried and he raced after the fleeing guymelef.

The Scheherazade was fast. Vulcan could keep up with her, but he was not going to overtake her.

"Dilandau, stop!" Vulcan cried. "You have to return to the Crusade. Allen Schezar is here to help you. You've caused enough destruction!"

"It won't be enough until all of Zybach is burning!" Dilandau screamed. "They all deserve to die! They destroyed me! They stole my life! I'll see them all dead! Dead and burning!"

Suddenly, the Scheherazade pulled up, rolled over and streaked toward him. Vulcan banked over hard to avoid a collision and swerved back to resume the pursuit, but Dilandau wasn't running. He drew his sword and flew straight toward Vulcan. Vulcan drew his own sword and countered Dilandau's strike. They fought in midair, swooping and swerving past each other, showering sparks whenever their swords clashed. Vulcan fought as hard as he could, but he couldn't overcome Dilandau's greater experience. Dilandau finally knocked into the Escaflowne's wing and the guymelef canted sharply. Caught off guard, Vulcan flew out of the cockpit and tumbled into the open sky.

Momentarily stunned, it took Vulcan a moment to catch his breath and regain his orientation. Then he snapped his wings out and pulled himself out of the fall. Without a pilot, the Escaflowne was spiraling down to the ground for a landing. Vulcan dove after the guymelef, anxious to get back inside. He looked back, but he could not see the Scheherazade.

_He's probably hiding in the sun_, Vulcan thought. _I've got to reach the Escaflowne._

He pulled his wings in and dropped into a steep dive. He and Amano had played this game, out of their parents' sight, when they were learning to fly. They would plummet straight toward the ground and then pull out at the last minute. At least, that was the plan. They had both had to explain away a fair number of cuts, bruises and sprains when the plan didn't go quite right, but it had been fun. Vulcan was glad for their foolishness now. That early practice paid off. He flared to a stop and dropped onto the Escaflowne just moments after the guymelef landed.

Vulcan quickly switched back to its standard configuration and scanned the skies around him, but Dilandau was no longer in the air. The Scheherazade stood a few dozen paces away with its sword pointed straight at Vulcan.

"That was very clever, Draconian," Dilandau said. "But it's not enough. Let's see how well you do on the ground."

Dilandau charged him and Vulcan threw up his guard. Fighting on the ground was even harder than fighting in the air. Dilandau fought with fanatic conviction. His blows rained down like an avalanche and Vulcan's blocks grew more and more desperate. He backed up, trying to put distance between himself and Dilandau's sword, but to no avail. Vulcan saw the final blow coming and he knew he would not get his sword up in time to block it. The impact knocked the sword from Vulcan's hand, crippled his right arm and knocked him sprawling. His vision exploded into stars.

When his senses cleared enough for him to see again, Vulcan saw Dilandau standing over him with his sword raised to strike and he wondered if it would do any good to beg for his life.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"NO!" Celena cried. Her voice was trembling with heartbreak and despair. "You promised!"

Dilandau froze. The Escaflowne was at his mercy. The terrible guymelef that had killed his friends, that had almost killed him, was helpless before him. All he had to do was strike and those terrible memories would be wiped away.

"But it won't bring them back!" Celena whispered.

_Why do I hesitate?_ Dilandau thought. _Isn't it fair to want revenge for their lives?_

"Do they want revenge?" Celena whispered.

A chorus of 'no's whispered in the back of Dilandau's mind.

"In death, they saved my life," Dilandau remembered. "They protected me."

"So honor them by granting life," Celena whispered. "Don't kill the boy."

"The boy?" Dilandau whispered in confusion.

"The boy in the guymelef," Celena responded. "He's not a soldier."

Dilandau stared at the Escaflowne's pilot. Van Fanel's son. Not a man, not a soldier, but a boy. A boy like those who had fought beside him in Zybach's name. A boy like those who had died protecting him. Dilandau lowered his sword.

"He's not one of them," he whispered. "He's not one of the ones who deserve to die."

He turned his back and lumbered away.

"Thank you!" Celena whispered. Her voice sounded strong and happy in his head again. "Only the scientists, the ones who hurt us, should die."

"Yes," Dilandau agreed. "It's time to find the scientists." He launched the Scheherazade into the sky.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Allen stood on the bridge of the Crusade trying to hide his fear. Beside him, Amano's eyes were bright with unshed tears. There was still no sign of the Escaflowne and they had been searching for hours. Vulcan did not respond to their calls and growing darkness was making the search more difficult.

"If they changed course after we lost sight of them," Gaddes said quietly, "they could be anywhere."

"I know!" Allen snapped. He glanced down at Amano and felt a surge of guilt. He had promised Van he would not risk the boys' lives and yet he had done just that. Sending Vulcan after Dilandau was worse than foolish. Dilandau had hated Van Fanel and the Escaflowne. Allen should have assumed he would attack the guymelef on sight.

"Vulcan's a good fighter," Amano said quietly. "He'll be all right."

Amano's obvious attempt to ease his own fears deepened Allen's guilt. He squeezed Amano's shoulder gently.

"Vulcan can handle himself and the Escaflowne," Allen said. "We'll find him."

"_Crusade…_"

Allen whirled toward the radio operator. "Turn it up!"

"_Crusade…_"

Although louder, the voice coming out of the speaker was still weak. Allen jumped for the console. "Vulcan! Where are you?"

"_Don't know… A valley…_"

"Gaddes, can you tell where it's coming from?"

"I'm trying, Allen. I need more, keep him talking."

Allen turned back to the console. "Vulcan, what happened?"

"_Dilandau… We fought… Didn't kill me…_"

Amano was gripping the side of the console, staring at the speaker where Vulcan's voice was emerging. The tears he'd been holding in for the past several hours were sliding down his cheeks and dripping onto the backs of his hands. "Vulcan, you idiot!" he cried out suddenly. "I told you to be careful!"

"_Was careful… Didn't die…_" Weak laughter issued from the speaker.

"I'm gonna kick the shit out of you!" Amano sobbed. "You better be all right!"

"_Wouldn't… disappoint… my baby brother._"

Allen put a comforting arm around Amano's shaking shoulders.

"Got him!" Gaddes announced. "East-south-east, maybe five minutes away."

The Escaflowne was lying on its back in a narrow valley. A nasty rent nearly separated the right arm from the body. A host of other gashes and dents made it clear the guymelef had been in a vicious battle. Allen gave terse orders as the Crusade landed a short distance away, where the valley was wide enough to accommodate its wingspan.

"I want lookouts on the ridges and sentries posted at both ends of the valley. We're vulnerable on the ground; I don't want to get caught here."

"Yes, sir!"

As men rushed off to take up the watches, Allen, Gaddes, Amano and several others hurried toward the Escaflowne. Amano sprang up onto the guymelef and pounded on the door with one foot.

"Open up, Vulcan! We're here!"

After a moment, the chest of the guymelef opened. Vulcan was battered and bloodied, but conscious.

"It's good to see you guys," he whispered weakly. His breath wheezed in his chest. "I was starting to feel pretty lonely."

"If you weren't such an idiot," Amano proclaimed, "I'd try to knock some sense into you."

Vulcan smiled. "I'm glad to see you to, little brother."

"Let's get you out of there," Allen said.

Moving slowly and with great care, they freed Vulcan from the seat straps and lifted him out of the Escaflowne. He didn't cry out during the process, but he was pale and sweating by the time they had him stretched out on the ground. The Crusade's medic, a jovial fellow named Echer Boles, examined Vulcan.

"It doesn't look like anything's broken," he reported to Allen quietly, "but the lad's pretty banged up. He's going to hurt for a while."

"At least he's alive," Allen murmured. "Let's get him back on the Crusade."

Gaddes joined them. "The Escaflowne took a beating, but it's repairable."

"How hard will it be to move it?" Allen asked. "I want to get everybody back on the Crusade and get back in the air."

"I think it will move on its own. We just need someone to drive it back onto the ship."

Allen nodded. "Ask Amano if he can pilot it. If not, I'll do it. But, I want to check the sentry reports first."

"Will do."

Amano was trailing after Vulcan on his stretcher, but he stopped when Gaddes called him.

"Say, Amano, can you pilot the Escaflowne? Allen wants everybody back on the ship and I think the Escaflowne can get there under its own power."

"Sure." Amano trotted back to the Escaflowne and climbed in. He closed the cockpit door and a moment later, the Escaflowne climbed unsteadily to its feet. "_It sure is a mess. My sensors are all screwed up._"

Allen spoke from the bridge. "Vulcan says try not to run into anything."

"_He should talk._"

Amano managed to lumber along in a fairly straight line to the ground entrance to the Crusade's hanger. He staggered a bit going up the ramp, but he managed to back the Escaflowne into place and get it seated without colliding with anything.

"Whew!" he exclaimed when he climbed down out of the cockpit. "We have our work cut out for us. There's a lot of damage." He started to edge toward the exit. "Does anyone mind if I go check on my brother first?"

Gaddes smiled. "Go ahead, we can manage."

"Thanks!" Amano dashed off, just barely avoiding crashing into Allen on his way out. "Sorry!"

"How's Vulcan?" Gaddes asked.

"He'll be all right, thank the gods. I could never have faced Hitomi again if I'd gotten him more seriously injured." Allen nodded toward the guymelef. "How long do you think the repairs will take?"

"A couple of days."

"We'd better find a place to hole up, then." Allen sighed, a worried frown creasing his forehead. "I just hope things don't escalate too quickly or we may not have the chance to save Celena."


	4. The Two Faces of Dilandau

This chapter is a little short. Sorry about that, but that's just the way it worked out. I was hurrying to get it done this week, so if it feels rushed, I apologize.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Chapter 4: The Two Faces of Dilandau

"How are the repairs coming?" Vulcan was sitting up in bed and he almost felt normal. At least, he did if he didn't try to move too much. It seemed like there were bruises everywhere.

"Pretty good," Amano replied. He was seated on the foot of Vulcan's bed. "They've got the arm servos all reconnected and most of the internal stuff. Now they're mostly just finishing up the surface repairs, resealing the outer skin, that sort of thing."

"Good." Vulcan sighed. "I feel like such an idiot letting the Escaflowne get so badly damaged."

"Don't feel bad. Allen said he saw the Escaflowne in much worse shape after some of Father's fights."

Vulcan grew thoughtful. "That was when Father bonded with the Escaflowne. He almost died while they were making repairs."

Amano nodded solemnly. "Yeah. When the Escaflowne's makers came back to fix it." He fixed large eyes on his brother. "You better not try to bond with the Escaflowne like that. You might…" He stopped, his lower lip quivering. "You really scared me Vulcan. I thought you were dead."

"I'm sorry." Vulcan leaned forward and put his hand on Amano's knee. "I won't try to fight Dilandau again. He's got too much experience. He's a better fighter than I am."

Amano sniffed and wiped his nose with the back of his hand. "In a guymelef, anyway. I bet you could take him in a sword fight."

"Maybe." Vulcan pushed his blanket down. "I should get up. All this lying around is making me feel useless."

"You're hurt!" Amano grabbed the blanket and tossed it back over Vulcan's legs. "No one expects you to be up and around for a few more days. At least wait until Dr. Boles says you're all right."

"I'm fine!" Vulcan grumbled, but he stopped trying to get up. He smiled wryly at Amano. "I suppose you feel like the big brother getting to take care of me for a change."

Amano smiled back. "Maybe. But I'll tell Dr. Boles you think you're ready to get up. If he says it's all right, I won't try to keep you in bed." Amano slid off the bed and stood up. "I'll bring you back something to eat, too."

"Thanks, Amano."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"There it is again!" Gaddes exclaimed. He pointed into the trees. "I saw a light flash."

Allen folded his arms across his chest and frowned. The Crusade was parked in a clearing in a heavily forested valley far from the nearest Zybach settlement. They were invisible except in the event that a floating fortress passed nearby, but they were so far from everything, that seemed unlikely. Yet there was clearly something else also hiding in these woods.

"I think we better send a patrol," Allen said. "I don't want to get caught off-guard. Take Amano with you."

"Are you sure about that?" Gaddes asked as they returned to the Crusade. "He's just a kid."

"He's a damn good swordsman," Allen replied firmly. "And I want to stay here with the Crusade, just in case."

"If you say so."

Amano was excited to be assigned to the patrol, but he followed Gaddes' orders and stayed in his assigned place in the patrol pattern. Gaddes was impressed. The boy might be young, but he was very well trained. It was late in the afternoon when their patrol of twelve men set off into the trees, moving carefully in the direction of the light Gaddes had seen.

They were making a silent patrol, spaced out so that each man always had at least two other men in sight on either side so they could signal each other without speaking. Gaddes had purposely placed Amano close by, mindful of Allen's concern for the young man's welfare. It was clear that Amano had been raised in a wooded area, though, because he moved extremely quietly. Gaddes could hear the man on Amano's other side, but not Amano.

About twenty minutes into the patrol, Amano stopped and signaled Gaddes. He beckoned for Gaddes to come over and pointed at the ground in front of him. Gaddes immediately signaled to the man on the other side of him to stop and gestured for Amano to do the same. When he was reasonably certain that everyone had stopped, Gaddes joined Amano.

"What is it?" Gaddes whispered.

"It's a booby trap," Amano whispered back. He dropped to one knee and traced a strand of twine with his fingertip without touching it. Then he pointed up the side of a tree to a suspended log overhead, half-hidden by tree branches. "There are probably others."

Gaddes nodded. "You spread the word down the line that way. I'll tell the men on this side. They need to keep their eyes open for more traps. Someone lives around here and they don't want company." He had barely finished speaking when a scream cut through the silence. Gaddes jumped to his feet. "Draw swords! Watch for ambush!" Then he turned and ran in the direction of the cry. Amano followed close on his heels.

They came quickly to where one of their men was down, his leg clamped in a spring-loaded trap. Blood was gushing from the wound and one man was trying desperately to clamp it while two others tried to winch open the trap. All three were cursing furiously. The wounded man was already pale and unconscious.

"Dammit!" Gaddes swore softly. "Fan out!" he shouted as other men arrived on the scene. "Form a perimeter. And watch for other traps! We can't afford to lose anyone else."

"They're coming!" Amano cried suddenly and he leaped forward. He took up a position a dozen or so paces beyond the wounded man and the men trying to rescue him with his sword at the ready. Three other men moved up to flank him just as twenty men charged from the cover of the underbrush and raced toward them shouting battle cries.

"Zybach deserters!" one of the men beside Amano shouted.

The attackers were wearing Zybach uniforms, but the tattered and stained condition of their clothing made it clear they had been living rough for a while. And this far from any settlement or garrison, they were obviously in hiding. It was simply the Asturians misfortunate that they had chosen to hide in the same place. The remaining Asturians, except for those helping the wounded man, rushed forward to meet the challenge.

With a clash of swords, battle was joined. The Zybach forces had clearly expected to take them by surprise and overwhelm them with numbers, but they had not reckoned on running into a fighter like Amano. The young samurai-in-training moved so fast, his sword was just a blur as he slipped inside the guard of the first man to face him and gutted him. Amano didn't stab his opponents, he slashed them, to avoid having his sword get hung up in someone's skeleton. But his slashes were just as effective as he slit throats, spilled intestines and severed tendons with brutal efficiency. Within seconds, the Zybach advantage of numbers was turned to a disadvantage and the survivors broke and ran.

"I'll get them!" Amano exclaimed and he dashed off after the fleeing soldiers.

"Go with him!" Gaddes ordered and five men dashed off after Amano.

Gaddes returned his attention to the wounded man. He had been freed from the trap and a tourniquet applied to his crushed leg, but his skin was clammy and pale and his breathing was extremely shallow.

"He's lost a lot of blood, Gaddes. I don't think he'll make it."

"The two of you carry him," Gaddes ordered. "Try to keep his leg elevated above his heart. Get back to the Crusade as fast as you can." Gaddes looked at the other two men. "Go with them. Make sure you don't run into any more traps."

"Yes, sir."

Gaddes watched them go, feeling a cold fury. Traps designed to kill men in such a cruel way were cowardly. He turned to follow in the direction Amano had gone. The trail was easy to follow, since it was spattered with blood and the occasional dying man. He caught up with Amano and the others where the Zybach soldiers had turned to make a last stand rather than be run down from behind, but the fight was over.

"Did you get anything from them?" Gaddes asked.

"They were deserters," Homdin, one of Allen's fellow Knights of Caeli, replied. "They've been hiding out here since the end of the war."

Gaddes stared. "Twenty years!

"Apparently, the penalty for desertion is death, so there's little motivation to return to society."

"I guess not. And Zybach soldiers aren't exactly welcome outside their empire."

"Even so."

"We'd better get back. I think it's time the Crusade moved on. There's probably more where these came from."

"Most likely, and they'll probably come looking when this lot doesn't return."

Gaddes nodded. "I agree. Let's get back to the Crusade." As they returned, however, Gaddes noticed that Amano seemed a little subdued. "Is something wrong, Amano?"

Amano shook his head, but he sniffled a little. "I've never killed anyone before," he said quietly. "It was a lot easier than I thought it would be. I guess I'm a little surprised at myself, that's all."

"It's always hard, the first time." Gaddes replied. He patted Amano's shoulder. "A man has to be able to kill when he needs to, but he shouldn't enjoy it. You'll be all right."

Amano smiled faintly. "Thanks, Gaddes."

They arrived back at the Crusade to find that the wounded man had died before reaching the airship.

"It could have been worse," Gaddes reported to Allen. "If Amano hadn't spotted that one booby trap, we could have walked into others. And you were right about the boy's skill. He made the difference today."

"I expected as much," Allen replied.

"You might want to have a chat with him, though. He was a little upset to find how good he is at killing. He could probably use a father-son sort of chat."

"I'll do that. In the meantime, I'm taking your advice. We're clearing out of this valley. The Escaflowne should be ready for battle day after tomorrow and Dr. Boles has cleared Vulcan to return to duty. It's time to get back to work."

"Do you have some idea of where to go? We've completely lost track of Dilandau now."

Allen nodded slowly. "Vulcan said Dilandau was talking to himself about killing the Zybach scientists. The scientists are all at the Zybach capitol so, sooner or later, Dilandau has to turn up there. We'll go there and wait for him. Hopefully, we can stop him before he gets himself, and Celena, killed."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Vulcan found Amano sitting on the flight deck, leaning against the wall outside the hanger doors. He sat down stiffly next to his little brother.

"How do you feel, Amano?"

"I don't know. All right, I guess."

Vulcan studied the side of his face. "You look a little down."

Amano sniffed. "It's just…" A tear slid down his cheek. "They were afraid of me. When I ran after them, they were screaming." He wiped another tear from his face. "One man was crying when I cut him. He didn't want to die." More tears spilled from his eyes. "Am I a bad person, Vulcan?"

Vulcan put his arm around Amano's shoulders. "No, you're not a bad person. You did what needed to be done, the way we were taught. Remember what Father told us: if someone attacks you, fight to the best of your ability. That's what you did."

"But I didn't show any mercy. Once we had them beaten, maybe I shouldn't have gone after them."

"You did the right thing," Vulcan growled. "Those men were cowards. They set traps designed to maim men and make them die horribly. Think about what happened to Roald. Did they show him any mercy?" Vulcan put his other arm around Amano and hugged him. "If those men had run back to their comrades, they would have returned in greater numbers, and maybe attacked us before we could get the Crusade off the ground. You bought us the time we needed to get away. I'm proud of you and I know Father would be too. You were a man today, Amano."

Amano leaned against Vulcan and wept softly. "It hurts to grow up," he whispered.

"That's how we know you'll be a good man."

"I'm glad you're my brother, Vulcan."

"I'm glad you're my brother, too, Amano."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Dilandau sat cross-legged on the ground in front of the Scheherazade, munching on some edible root. He didn't know what it was, but Celena did. She seemed to know all kinds of odd things. But it was useful that she knew what sort of things could be picked off bushes or pulled out of the ground and eaten. Destroying guymelefs was hard work and he kept getting hungry.

"I'm glad you didn't kill the boy," Celena whispered.

"Van Fanel's son," Dilandau muttered. "He was as old as Van was when I fought him. How old am I?" Dilandau looked at his hand that was holding the root. The skin was smooth and unblemished; not an old man's hand. "Why don't I look old?" He touched his face. The skin there was smooth, too, and beardless. "I should be old enough to grow a beard."

Celena giggled. "I'm a girl! Girls don't grow beards."

"I'm not a girl!" Dilandau protested.

"But you're me."

Dilandau shook his head. It was all so confusing. How could he be Celena and Dilandau? "I'm Dilandau!" he whispered anxiously. "Aren't I?"

"Yes."

"But you said I'm you!"

"You are."

"How can I be two people?" Dilandau asked with rising panic. "That's not possible! I have to be one or the other!"

"Why?"

Celena's simple question stunned him. Dilandau stared blindly at the ground in front of him. One person or two? Man or woman? He didn't know anymore. He might have known once, but he had suffered too much, lost too much.

"The scientists made us this way," he whispered. "They made it so I don't know who I am." He clenched his fist, slowly mashing the root in his hand. "I'll kill them all and then we'll know who we are."

"Yes," Celena agreed. "When the scientists are gone, we can remember who we are."

Dilandau shoved the rest of the root into his mouth and stood up, wiping his hand on his trousers. The sun had set and deepening twilight filled the canyon with shadow. He was tired. Five days had passed since his fight with the Escaflowne and he had run into Zybach patrols twice since then. The Scheherazade was starting to show the wear and tear of all the battles. _I need to sleep._

_So do I_, Celena's thought echoed his.

He looked up at the Scheherazade. He would sleep in the cockpit again so the sensors could alert him if another patrol found him, even though it was uncomfortable and he could never do more than doze.

"I need to end this," he said to himself, and to Celena. "It's time to go to the capitol. That's where the scientists are. Their forces are spread all over the empire now, trying to find us. So now we will strike at the heart of the beast and destroy them."


	5. The Citadel

Chapter 5: The Citadel

Vulcan angled in for a landing on the Crusade's flight deck. He dropped down neatly without causing any damage and the Escaflowne reverted to its standard configuration. He entered the hanger slowly, lumbering into his parking space with calm confidence. Allen smiled as he watched. Ever since he lost the fight with Dilandau, Vulcan's confidence had incongruously increased. It was as if discovering his limitations had allowed him to mature.

"What did you see?" Allen called as Vulcan exited the Escaflowne's cockpit.

"The capitol is on high alert, but there aren't as many patrols as I would have expected," Vulcan said. "There's a curfew, I think, because the streets emptied out at sunset."

"Were you spotted?"

"I don't think so, but I was flying pretty high. If they saw me at all, they probably thought I was a dragon. I didn't go in close until after it got dark and then I went under my own power."

"You father will kill me if he finds out you were flying patrols as a Draconian."

"It was safer that way, odd as that sounds. Their machines aren't going to detect me on my own and I'm quiet when I fly, especially when I'm gliding."

Allen nodded. It was all true, of course, and it made perfect sense, but he still suspected that Van would be furious. And Allen didn't want to even think about the skinning Hitomi would probably give him. "No sign of Dilandau?"

"Nothing," Vulcan replied. "And I don't think Zybach has any idea where he is either. They've got the whole perimeter under guard and four of their largest floating fortresses are holding station over the city."

"Damn! That's going to make it pretty tough for us if we have to go in there." Allen rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "How many flying guymelefs did you see?"

"Not that many and most of them were flying patrols around the perimeter. Either Dilandau destroyed a lot of their forces or they've still got most of them spread out throughout the empire trying to engage him."

"It's probably a little of both," Allen replied. He chewed his lower lip. "The question is: how fast can they get back here when Dilandau attacks? Because we know he will."

"Do you really think he's going to try to destroy the whole city?"

"No. If he's after the scientists, he'll go for the Citadel at the city center."

"That's a long way for the Crusade to fly through enemy forces."

"I know." Allen fell silent. There was nothing about this situation that he liked. He did not want to put the Crusade at risk and endanger the lives of his crew, but how else was he to get close enough to the Citadel to rescue Dilandau? Assuming Dilandau would allow himself to be rescued. How mad had he become? Was there any trace of Celena left in him at all?

"He'll probably drop down from above." Vulcan spoke in a speculative tone. "That seems to be how he's initiated all his attacks so far and Zybach doesn't seem to be able to counter it." Vulcan smiled slightly. "Amano and I understand the technique. It's a raptor's attack and few creatures know how to counter it."

Allen tilted his head to one side and studied Vulcan. "But you're something of a raptor yourself, aren't you?"

Vulcan's smile widened. "You could say that."

"So you probably know how to counter that attack. What do you think Zybach will do?"

"Sacrifice someone," Vulcan replied calmly. "Put someone in his path to cause a collision."

"Where were those floating fortresses stationed? Was any of them directly over the Citadel?"

"Yes."

"If I had to plan the defense," Allen said slowly, "I'd have only a skeleton crew on that station and pack it full of extra fuel and explosives. Then, when Dilandau attacks, I would detonate the station right before he strikes. He would be caught in the explosion."

Vulcan's eyes widened and Allen nodded. "We need to keep him from attacking that fortress."

Vulcan saluted. "I'll do that, sir."

"But we don't know when he'll attack. You can't just hover above the city every night."

"I don't think we have much choice. I can sleep during the day. Somehow, I don't think he'll attack in broad daylight. He wants to succeed."

Allen sighed. "You're probably right." He gripped Vulcan's shoulder briefly. "Why don't you get something to eat and get some rest now? It's nearly dawn, so I don't think anything will happen tonight."

"Yes sir."

Allen watched Vulcan walk away. The young man was probably tired, but he carried himself with a samurai's pride. The Fanel boys were turning out to be very impressive young men.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Dilandau had his sensors set at their maximum magnification, but it was still difficult to see details on the Citadel. He was just too far away. Nevertheless, he could see the forces encircling the city and the fortresses hanging above it.

"They're expecting me, it seems," he murmured.

"There are so many!" Celena whispered worriedly.

"But it's fewer than there should be," Dilandau replied softly. "They're still so afraid I might yet attack somewhere else, they haven't brought all their forces here to protect the Citadel." He chuckled softly. "I'll make sure they pay for that mistake!"

"But there's only one of us. How can they be so afraid?"

"The prognostication engine was destroyed decades ago. They cannot predict my movements, so they fear me." He returned the magnification of the sensors to normal. "It will be dark soon. We will wait and strike them in the pre-dawn hours." He settled back in the seat and closed his eyes. "Rest now, Celena. We will need all our strength for the coming battle."

Celena's consciousness, coiled in the back of his mind, fell silent. These days, Celena slept when he slept, and was awake when he was awake. Dilandau was starting to understand that it didn't used to be like that. He remembered the past when he had been all alone in his mind, but now, with Celena there, he understood that the long stretches of time that he did not remember were when Celena's thoughts would control the body they shared.

Two minds, one body. Or one person? Did it really matter which? Dilandau was starting to think that it didn't. He dozed off with the warm comfort of Celena's mind cuddled against his own.

"It's dark."

Celena's whisper woke Dilandau and he opened his eyes. He glanced at the chronometer. It was half way between midnight and dawn, the darkest hour of the night and the time when the human mind was at its worst. He brought Scheherazade's systems on-line and scanned the area. There was nothing.

"It's time to bring an end to this," Dilandau said. "The scientists will finally learn they are not free to manipulate the lives of others with impunity."

The Scheherazade was sitting on a ledge on the side of a mountain. Dilandau simply tilted forward and dropped off. The guymelef's wings flared out and they swooped away toward the distant city, gaining altitude rapidly as they flew. The lights of the city reached high into the sky, casting a glow almost like sunrise. Dilandau flew high enough to stay clear of that glow. He did not want to be seen too soon. Fighting his way into the Citadel would be difficult enough.

But as he neared the city, his sensors alerted him to the presence of another guymelef flying at almost the same altitude as he was. He recognized the configuration immediately: the Escaflowne!

Dilandau spoke into his communicator. "Don't try to stop me, Vulcan! This is my fight, not yours."

"You can't win, Dilandau." Vulcan sounded worried. "We're sure they've set a trap for you."

"It doesn't matter. I have to do this."

"It's the only way to stop the pain!" Celena echoed.

Vulcan didn't respond and for a moment Dilandau was confused. Had the Escaflowne's pilot heard Celena speak?

"Dilandau?" The confusion in Vulcan's voice made it clear he had.

"Just stay out of my way!" Dilandau shouted. He accelerated and flew above the Escaflowne, heading for the Citadel. The Escaflowne turned to follow him.

"Dilandau!" Vulcan called. "Don't attack the fortress over the Citadel! We think it's an ambush!"

Dilandau looked down. A formidable looking floating fortress was centered directly over the Citadel. His normal attack would be to drop down on the fortress and attempt to destroy it so the debris would fall on the Citadel below. In the ensuing confusion, he could then fly into the Citadel and detonate the power generator at its core. But Vulcan's warning made him study the situation more closely. He had used the technique once already and it seemed foolhardy for them to provide him with the identical setup. It probably was an ambush. He slowed down so Vulcan could catch up with him.

"What kind of ambush?" Dilandau asked. If Allen Schezar had analyzed the situation, maybe he had an idea Dilandau could use.

"We think they'll wait for you to drop on them from above, like before, and detonate the fortress to destroy you."

"Destroy an entire fortress just to kill me?"

"You have caused quite a lot of havoc."

Dilandau chuckled. "You think so?" He stared down at the fortress again. Destroy an entire fortress? That was just the sort of trade-off the Zybach commanders would make to stop the destruction he was causing. Suddenly, Dilandau laughed. "But that means they don't have enough crew on board to man all the guns. Help me, Vulcan. Draw their fire so I can knock that thing out of the sky."

"That's insane!" Vulcan responded. "We shouldn't try to go near it."

"Hasn't anyone told you?" Dilandau replied, still laughing. "I am insane!" He pulled up sharply and dropped, not toward the fortress, but to one side of it.

"Dammit!" Vulcan shouted and the Escaflowne plunged after him.

Dilandau dropped until he was almost level with the fortress, then he pulled up and banked to the right. "Break left!" he called into the communicator and was relieved to see Vulcan follow his command. They immediately began taking fire from the fortress, but as Dilandau had suspected, most of the cannon were clearly on automatic. They tracked the guymelefs, but they did not anticipate their movements.

More vulnerable in the open cockpit, Vulcan climbed as he flew past the fortress, keeping his distance. But his presence was all Dilandau needed. He flew low and managed to slip under the fortress. With the Citadel and the city below them, they couldn't shoot toward the ground. But now that he was under the fortress, there was nothing to impede his attack on the Citadel. Dilandau pulled the Scheherazade's wings in and dropped.

"Dilandau, no!" Vulcan cried.

Dilandau ignored him. He drew his sword and aimed for the opening in the top of the Citadel. Once, a pillar of green light had spread the Zone of Perfect Convergence through that opening. Now Dilandau was carrying destruction back through it.

"Watch out!"

The cry came only an instant before the Escaflowne flew into him, knocking him off course. They both went tumbling and crashed into the great dome. At the same time, a shattering explosion rent the air above them. The shock wave caved in the dome and the Scheherazade was flung to the ground. Dilandau lost track of the Escaflowne. He staggered to his feet, trying to get his bearings. Fire and debris were raining down around him. The fortress had become a ball of fire and it was dropping out of the sky.

Dilandau threw back his head and laughed. "We did it, Celena! The Citadel will be destroyed! The scientists will die!"

"But it's falling on us, too!" Celena cried. "I don't want to die!"

Dilandau stared up at the fire, mesmerized. "But it's burning. Everything must burn."

"But not us!" Celena whispered. "Not us."

She reached for the controls. Celena knew how to fly the guymelef. She had watched Dilandau do it for weeks now. She grasped the controls and propelled them into the air and away from the conflagration. As they fled, a massive explosion sent an enormous fireball into the air as the fortress crashed into the Citadel.

"I hope the boy got away," she whispered, looking back. "He helped us. I don't want him to die."

"He did," Dilandau murmured in the back of her mind. "I see him."

Celena looked again and saw the white dragon shape circling the fire and heading toward them. "He's following us!" she exclaimed in alarm.

"There are guymelefs ahead," Dilandau said.

"No more fighting!" Celena cried and she pushed the Scheherazade to full speed. They flashed past the flying guymelefs moving to intercept them and sped away from the city. "I don't want to kill anymore!"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Even from their distant vantage point, the explosion of the floating fortress shocked the Asturians onboard the Crusade.

"Vulcan!" Allen cried into the communicator.

"He would know better than to go near that fortress, wouldn't he, Allen?" Amano asked anxiously.

The burning fortress looked brighter than the sun as it began to fall.

"They didn't use enough explosives!" Gaddes exclaimed. "The fortress wasn't blown apart!"

"It will be when it hits the ground," someone muttered.

"Vulcan, answer me!" Allen shouted.

"_I'm all right!_"

Allen sagged with relief at the sound of Vulcan's voice. "What happened? Where's Dilandau?"

"_He's making a run for it. He should be heading right toward you._"

"I see him!" Gaddes said suddenly. He pointed and Allen saw the bright golden shape of the Scheherazade speeding toward them.

"Celena! This is the Crusade! I order you to stop!" Allen wasn't sure if he should be speaking to Celena or Dilandau.

"_Too much death!_" The voice that rang out of the speakers could have been Celena's. The Scheherazade did not slow down.

"Get after her!" Allen ordered as the golden guymelef flashed by, followed a moment later by the white dragon.

"_I'll keep her in sight!_" Vulcan called as he whizzed by.

The Crusade turned to pursue them.

"We'll never catch them," Amano said with a worried frown. "What if Dilandau attacks Vulcan again?"

"Vulcan won't let that happen," Allen reassured him. "He knows better."

"I hope so," Amano whispered. He stared anxiously after the rapidly disappearing guymelefs.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Vulcan didn't try to speak to Dilandau again. The last few communications from the Scheherazade had not sounded like Dilandau at all. Neither did he try to overtake the other guymelef. There was something going on that Vulcan did not completely understand, so he maintained his distance and simply continued the pursuit. But when they had traveled a good distance from the Zybach capitol, Dilandau abruptly slowed down and dropped down to a landing on a wide plateau. Keeping a careful distance, Vulcan landed as well.

As Vulcan watched, Dilandau exited the cockpit and took several paces toward him. When he stopped, Vulcan exited the Escaflowne and moved to meet him.

"Why are you following me? What do you want?"

Vulcan stared at Dilandau. His mannerisms and speech were not the same as when they'd met before. In fact, his voice didn't even sound the same. A sudden insight struck him.

"Celena?"

"What do you want from me?" she repeated, and this time Vulcan could really here the feminine pitch to her voice.

"Allen's worried about you, Celena. He wants you to come home."

"Allen?"

"Your brother."

Celena's wide eyes looked bruised, as if she had not gotten enough sleep. "My brother, Allen Schezar," she said. When she spoke Allen's name, she sounded like Dilandau.

"You did what you came to do, Celena," Vulcan continued softly. "The Citadel was destroyed. The scientists must all be dead."

"But we don't know that." This time, she really sounded like Dilandau.

"It's enough," Vulcan said. "There's been enough killing."

"Yes!" Celena said earnestly. "No one else has to die. I don't want to kill anymore."

"We can wait here for the Crusade." Vulcan watched Celena's face as he spoke, watching for signs of Dilandau. "He'll take us home."

"Allen's home?"

"It's your home, too. You were born there."

A wave of darkness washed over Celena's face and Dilandau looked out of her eyes. "I was born on a surgical table in the Citadel."

Vulcan shook his head. "You were made there, Dilandau, but that's not where Celena was born."

"I thought I died there," Celena whispered.

"You're not dead," Dilandau whispered back.

Vulcan watched this exchange, trying to keep the curiosity off of his face. Celena fixed her eyes on his.

"I remember you," she said softly. "We hurt you."

"I'm fine now," Vulcan replied.

"I'm glad."

"Shall we wait for Allen?"

"Yes." Celena sat down on the ground and Vulcan sat down next to her. "Did you see the fire? It burned so brightly. The flames were red and gold and orange." Faint laughter echoed under her words.

"It was very pretty," Vulcan agreed.

Celena nodded. She looked toward the horizon, where the first faint light of dawn was just beginning to show. "It's a new day," she murmured.


	6. Home

Chapter 6: Home

The Crusade settled in for a landing not far from the two guymelefs. Vulcan stood up and waved at the airship to show he was all right. Beside him, Celena also rose and stared at the airship with wide eyes.

"That is Allen's ship," she murmured.

"Yes, it is," Vulcan responded. He glanced at her, wondering if Dilandau was going to come back to the surface. They had been chatting all morning, waiting for the Crusade to arrive. It had been an odd conversation. In one breath, he would be speaking to Celena, and in the next, Dilandau would answer him. But neither Celena nor Dilandau seemed inclined to either flee or fight. They both seemed tired; drained by the battles and the driving need for revenge. Perhaps physical exhaustion was finally starting to overwhelm the emotional turmoil within.

Vulcan was not surprised when only Allen, Gaddes and Amano exited the Crusade to approach them. No doubt Allen was concerned about exposing Celena to too many people before he knew her emotional state.

"I'm glad to see you're both all right," Allen said as soon as he reached them. He smiled at Celena. "I was very worried about you, Celena."

"I'm sorry, Allen," Celena said gravely. "I didn't mean to worry you."

Allen studied her face. "Is it over now? Will you finally be able to put all this behind you?"

Celena combed her finger through her hair. The gesture was quite feminine, but the eyes that returned Allen's gaze were Dilandau's. "We don't know if the scientists were killed in the explosion at the Citadel."

"No, we don't," Allen said quietly. "We may never know if the people responsible for what happened to you have paid for that crime. But is it worth more lives trying to make sure?"

"I swore to kill them all."

"Dilandau swore that. And some certainly will have died. But innocent lives were lost, too. I think it's time to stop."

"Yes." Celena touched Allen's arm. "Vulcan said it is time to go home. Will you take us home?"

"Yes, that's why I'm here. Come." He took Celena's arm and led her toward the ship. "Gaddes, will you load the Scheherazade?"

"Sure thing, Allen."

Amano leaned close to Vulcan and whispered, "So is that Celena or Dilandau, now?"

"It's sort of both, I think," Vulcan answered. "I mean, they're both still in there, and sometimes one answers and sometimes it's the other. It's really weird."

"That is weird." Amano frowned. "But doesn't that mean that Dilandau could just take off again?"

"I don't know. Maybe." Vulcan started toward the Escaflowne. "But while we were talking, it seemed like they'd achieved a kind of balance. Maybe that's the best Allen can ever hope for: sort of a cooperative schizophrenia."

"But doesn't that mean Celena will always be insane?" Amano asked in confusion.

"I think her mind is too damaged for her to ever be completely sane."

"That's too bad."

"Yeah. I'm going to put the Escaflowne back in the hanger. I'll see you inside."

"All right."

Once both the Scheherazade and the Escaflowne were parked safely in the hanger, the Crusade lifted off and set a course for Fanelia. Vulcan couldn't help feeling a little excited. They were going home.

"The sooner we get out of Zybach territory, the better," Allen said.

"At maximum speed, we'll clear the border in two days," Gaddes reported.

"Good. I'm going to check on Celena."

"What do you think will happen to Celena, Gaddes?" Amano asked after Allen had gone. "Won't people treat her badly because of what she did?"

"Well, people have a lot of respect for Allen in Asturia, and frankly, I don't think anyone cares about what happens in Zybach as long as they don't start another war. She'll probably be all right." Gaddes smiled at Amano. "But what about you? You've changed quite a bit since coming with us. You've grown up quite a lot."

Amano beamed proudly. "Thank you! This has been a very exciting experience. I'm glad I wasn't just a burden."

Gaddes gripped Amano's shoulder for a moment. "You were not raised to be a burden, Amano, and you've lived up to your father's expectations. You have every right to be proud of yourself." He tapped Vulcan on the shoulder as well. "You both do. You made the difference for us, and I know Allen is grateful."

Vulcan exchanged a large smile with his little brother. Receiving praise from someone as experienced as Gaddes was praise indeed.

"I'm glad our father allowed us to come with you," Vulcan said. "I've always had misgivings about becoming king of Fanelia one day, since the killing of dragons was outlawed. I wasn't sure how I would be able to prove, to myself as well as the rest of the kingdom, that I am fit to serve. Now I feel… as though I don't have to prove anything. Does that make sense?"

"It makes perfect sense," said Gaddes. "You've learned to believe in yourself. A good king needs self-confidence as well as intelligence. I'd say you have an adequate measure of both." He grinned at Vulcan and Vulcan grinned back.

Amano punched Vulcan lightly on the arm. "As long as you don't develop a swelled head, too. I'm pretty sure a king doesn't need that."

Vulcan laughed. "I'll keep that in mind."

"Do you think Mother and Father will notice a change in us?"

"I'm sure they will, Amano." Vulcan put his arm around his brother's shoulders. "We aren't the same boys who left Fanelia. And I think the changes are for the better."

"I bet Chief Samurai Sesston will still say my attacks are too reckless."

"Probably. But with your reflexes, I think he might have to concede that for you, it works."

"I can't wait to get home."

"Me, too."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Allen knocked on the door of Celena's stateroom and paused briefly before opening it. Like all of the Crusade's staterooms, which Allen reserved for guests, it boasted a narrow bed, a table and two chairs, a washbasin and stand, and a small porthole. Celena sat at the table with her hands folded neatly in front of her, staring toward the porthole. She turned to look at Allen as he entered.

"I'm not disturbing you, am I?" Allen asked.

Celena shook her head. "No. I'm not doing anything." She sighed. "It seems odd to be doing nothing."

Allen pulled the second chair around to the opposite of the table and sat down facing Celena. "You'll feel better when we get home, but we'll be stopping in Fanelia first to drop off the Fanel boys."

Celena's eyes sharpened and Dilandau spoke. "Fanelia! King Van will try to kill me. I destroyed Fanelia the last time I was there."

"That was a long time ago," Allen replied.

Dilandau leaned forward. "Van will not have forgiven me. Thousands of Fanelians died."

"You can stay on board the Crusade. Van won't try to kill my sister if he's not brought face to face with Dilandau."

Dilandau sat back. "Do you think he will care about Celena's life if it means ending mine?"

"Van is my friend. If I tell him that Dilandau is gone, he'll believe me."

Dilandau chuckled. "Can you honestly say that?"

Allen reached out and touched Dilandau's hand. "Van doesn't need to see anyone but Celena. You understand that?"

Dilandau gazed back at Allen in silence for several moments. Then he dropped his eyes and put his other hand on top of Allen's. "It's deception, Allen," Celena said softly. She looked up and met Allen's eyes. "And too many people know the truth. It would be wrong to lie to Van. He will know who we are."

"I want you to have a chance at a normal life, Celena. It's not too late for that. I won't accept that it's too late for that."

Celena smiled sadly. "I can never have a normal life, Allen. I did too many cruel things in the past for people to forget."

"That was Dilandau," Allen whispered.

"We are the same person," Celena answered gently. "And I'm not aging like other people. I will always remind people of the person I was. I am grateful to you, Allen, for wanting to help me and for giving me a second chance. But we can't expect everyone to forgive me, no matter what made me the way I was. I am Dilandau."

Allen lowered his head to hide the tears in his eyes. He could still see the innocent child Celena had been in the woman before him, but the half-crazed monster that was Dilandau was still there, too. Which one of them was in charge now?

"We're done with killing, Allen. We won't look back." It could have been Celena or Dilandau who spoke. The echo of both could be heard in those words.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

It was a fairly large party that rode out to meet the Crusade. Two dozen samurai, led by Chief Samurai Sesston himself, escorted Hitomi, Van, Bethany, Yukari, Darvi and Merle as they made their way out of the city into the wide meadow where the Crusade was coming to rest. Hitomi was both excited and afraid, wondering what they would find when the Crusade's passengers finally disembarked. She wanted to believe in her boys, but the mother in her couldn't help worrying.

"There they are!" Yukari cried and Hitomi was flooded with stark relief. Vulcan and Amano came bounding down the ramp ahead of Allen and several others. Hitomi dismounted and hurried forward, but Van still beat her there. He clasped his sons in a firm embrace, kissing each of them on the cheek. Hitomi smiled. Van was obviously feeling very strong emotion or he would never display such affection publicly.

But Amano quickly disengaged himself to wrap his arms around his mother's waist. Hitomi had to reach up a little to put her arms around his neck. She hugged him tightly.

"I think you've gotten taller, Amano."

"Really?" He kissed her cheek. "I missed you, Mother, but I can't wait to tell you everything that happened. It was so exciting."

She kissed him gently. "I imagine it was."

The rest of the family crowded around excitedly, doling out hugs and words of praise as Van turned to greet Allen.

"How did it go?"

"We were successful," Allen replied gravely. "Thank you for sending Vulcan and Amano with us. Their assistance proved invaluable. They helped me recover Celena." Allen reached out to clasp Celena's arm.

Van frowned as he studied Celena's face. "Is it Celena?" he asked frankly.

"Well…" Allen began.

Celena put her hand on Allen's where it rested on her arm and interrupted him. "I won't let Allen lie about me, Van. I am Celena, but I am Dilandau, too." She bowed her head slightly. "I offer my apology for my past crimes against you and your people."

"It is difficult for me to accept an apology from you."

"I understand," Celena replied gravely. "I was created to kill and that's what I did. But I choose not to kill anymore. There is no other way for Dilandau to make amends."

Van nodded slowly. "I can accept that." He glanced at Hitomi and Hitomi nodded, too.

"You may credit your son Vulcan for helping me onto this path," Celena continued. "Meeting him was something of a… catharsis for me." She smiled at Vulcan. "He resembles you, King Van."

Van and Hitomi both started. It might have been Dilandau speaking.

"If you'll forgive me," Allen said, "I wasn't planning to stay. I think it will be safer for Celena back on our estate in Asturia."

"Are you sure, Allen?" Hitomi answered. It was an awkward situation. Whether they could forgive Celena or not, there were many people in Fanelia who hated the very existence of Dilandau. It probably would not be safe for her here.

"I'm sure." He released Celena's arm and stepped forward to clasp Hitomi's shoulders. Looking up at him, Hitomi was reminded that he was still one of the handsomest men she had ever seen. "I'll come back another time for a proper visit." He kissed her cheek.

"Please do," Hitomi returned the kiss on his lips, ignoring Van's annoyed frown.

Allen turned to Vulcan and Amano. "Gentlemen." He held out his hand. Vulcan clasped it and Allen shook his hand firmly. He did the same with Amano. "I am indebted to you. You are a credit to your family and your kingdom. It has been an honor working with you."

"Thank you." Vulcan and Amano exchanged half-embarrassed smiles.

Allen turned back to Van. "You've raised some fine young men here, Van. Thank you for lending them to me."

"You're welcome." Van smiled fondly at his sons.

"I'd better get the Escaflowne," Vulcan said. He hurried back up the ramp.

"I'll get our things," Amano added and he ran after his brother.

"I suppose we should wait until you're back in the air before we ask them what happened," Van said casually.

Allen grinned. "I'd appreciate it. I'd rather leave remembering Hitomi's kiss instead of the tongue-lashing I'd likely get when she hears what I let them do."

Hitomi lifted an eyebrow at him.

"In my defense, let me just say ahead of time that I brought them home in one piece with no significant scars."

"Significant scars?"

"Every man should have at least a few scars."

Hitomi folded her arms under her breasts. "Maybe you should stay for a while after all."

"I think I'll just escort Celena back on board." Allen looped his arm through Celena's and started back up the ramp. "I'll visit you next year. Promise!"

Van waved. "Until next year."

Hitomi looked at Van. "You're just going to let him leave."

Van put his arm around her waist. "I sent my boys with Allen and he brought two men back. I became a better king because of a war waged by Dilandau. Now the same thing has happened to my sons. It's all sort of symmetric. Anyway, no matter what happened, they have come home alive and unharmed, so I'm willing to give Allen the benefit of the doubt."

"Still…"

"And don't forget," Van put his lips close to her ear and whispered. "I took you into battle with me when you were sixteen years old. Did you ever mention that to your parents?"

"Well…" Hitomi flushed.

"Let's take our sons home and let them tell us about their adventure."

Hitomi sighed. "I think this is the part of children growing up that all mothers fear."

"What?" Van chuckled. "Admitting they are adults who can decide to do dangerous things? I thought you got over that with Yukari."

"I don't think I'll ever get over it."

"That's because you love them."

Hitomi put her arms around his neck. "As much as I love their father."

Van smiled and kissed her warmly.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Dilandau woke suddenly. It was dark and for a moment the room seemed unfamiliar. Then he remembered. This was Celena's room on the Schezar estate in Asturia. This was his home now. Their home. Dilandau sat up. Faint light shone through the sheer curtain covering the window. He got up and went to the window, pushing the curtain aside. Silvery light from the setting Mystic Moon glimmered on the grass and trees outside. It was peaceful and beautiful.

The stark contrast to Dilandau's early memories of humming machines and horrible pain for a moment sent his pulse racing.

"It's all right," Celena murmured. "That is the past." She lifted her hand and opened the window, letting the cool night air flow into the room. "This is the present."

The chill air soothed Dilandau's pounding heart. He leaned on the windowsill and looked up at the night sky. "I never have to fight again. I never have to kill anyone again."

"That's right," Celena agreed. "Allen will always take care of us and we'll always be together."

Dilandau smiled. "And I'll never be alone again."

The End


End file.
